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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23711305">An Icy Betrayal</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ObsceneSins/pseuds/ObsceneSins'>ObsceneSins</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rise of the Guardians (2012)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Assault, Birth, Character genderbend, Emotional Manipulation, F/M, Fem!Jack Frost - Freeform, Female Jack Frost, Genderbending, Magic, Mind Control, Mind Manipulation, Nightmares, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pregnancy, Rape/Non-con Elements, Trauma, Underage Drinking, Underage Rape/Non-con</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 21:00:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Rape/Non-Con, Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23711305</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ObsceneSins/pseuds/ObsceneSins</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Humans are good at a lot of things, but putting time in perspective is not one of them. It’s not our fault—the spans of time in human history, and even more so in natural history, are so vast compared to the span of our life and recent history that it’s almost impossible to get a handle on it. If the Earth formed at midnight and the present moment is the next midnight, 24 hours later, modern humans have been around since 11:59:59pm—1 second.”</p><p>Life really can pass you really fast though. You’ll never see the clock moving forward until it’s too late.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>E. Aster Bunnymund/Jack Frost, Jack Frost/Pitch Black</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>33</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>                                                                                                                                                           </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Jacklyn recalls a time where she snuck into a university. Searching for a new value of information, or out of boredom, she couldn’t recall. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>The professor had turned the light off, and she settled into one of the auditorium chairs, a comfy break from the cold tree branches she tended to use, and a video projector lit up the dim room.</em>
</p><p>“<em>Humans are good at a lot of things, but putting time in perspective is not one of them. It’s not our fault—the spans of time in human history, and even more so in natural history, are so vast compared to the span of our life and recent history that it’s almost impossible to get a handle on it. If the Earth formed at midnight and the present moment is the next midnight, 24 hours later, modern humans have been around since 11:59:59pm—1 second.”</em></p><p>It had caught her attention and she remember leaning forward in her seat.</p><p>The world is white, a blizzard of static above her.</p><p>
  <em>How odd of a concept to imagine life as.</em>
</p><p>A muffled noise to her left, she suddenly realizes her ears are ringing.</p><p>
  <em>So many events, lives, are squished down into such a small portion of time.</em>
</p><p>Her head is throbbing, her vision wavering from the pain.</p><p>
  <em>Life really can pass you really fast though. You’ll never see the clock moving forward until it’s too late.</em>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>The best thing about being a Guardian without a holiday meant Jacklyn never found herself hurting for time to <em>do </em>whatever she felt the need to do.</p><p>She drifted the thermals for a while, traveling for the time being. She enjoyed life outside of her small isolated circle she had kept for so many years. Kids saw her, laughter and surprise when a scrawny teen with white hair would drizzle flurries onto the streets the day before they had to go back to the school after a holiday, a random snowball fight started with a secretly flung snowball, the ponds in the local park being frozen enough to skate on.</p><p>She would float down to the younger ones, looking at her with big eyes of wonder as they clutched their parent’s hands. She would put a finger to her lips, pulled into a sly smile, and open her palm to make ice sculptures of little animals.</p><p>Oh, the joy on their faces! A joy she could now share.</p><p>It had been a few years since the battle with Pitch and life…life was better.</p><p>The bad thing about being a Guardian without a holiday, meant you had to make your own time. No one devoted a whole month of decorating for one day for you. No one drew pictures of you.</p><p>Jackie….didn’t really have anything to ever plan for.</p><p>The day was hers to seize and yet, she had nothing to grasp for.</p><p>Her only past times consisted of hijinks and consistently keeping herself entertained by visiting new places, old places or her friends.</p><p>Maybe if she hadn’t gone there that day.</p><p>Maybe the clock wouldn’t have clicked forward so fast.</p><p>She was riding the high thermals, feeling the warm wind tickle her skin. She was bored, the kids had gone back to school (she could only delay school for <em>so long</em>) and without anyone to play with, she drifted off away from the noise of the population, into the quiet of the atmosphere.</p><p>She found herself thinking of her friends, the people who called her family.</p><p>North, with his jolly Russian accent and need to make people feel good.</p><p>Tooth, her busy body flitting to and from as she worked on providing the kids their rewards for their teeth and memories.</p><p>Sandy, his lack of speech never being an issue, able to conjure amazing worlds in the forms of dreams.</p><p>Bunnymund…</p><p>Jacklyn drifted down a little, getting closer to the ground ever so little.</p><p>Too many years of disagreements lead to a friendship nearly overnight. But even now, the closest she had been to Aster had been when they were painting the eggs, and had their little heart to heart.</p><p>Aster had put his furry paw on Jackie’s, presumably subconsciously as he spoke, and only was it when he stopped did the two look at one another. Jackie’s face had felt warm from a blush and they both looked away, too late not to know what the other was thinking, too distant to talk about it.</p><p>Jackie stared at her hand for a moment, remembering how the not rough, but not silky fur paw had caressed hers before pulling away in embarrassment.</p><p>Jackie noticed the air becoming warmer around her, or was it just her?</p><p>She glanced down and noticed she had been drifting for a while, the ground beneath her slightly unfamiliar.</p><p>What else was there to do?</p><p>“Hey…let’s go to the Warren.” She spoke quietly, almost seemingly to no one. But the Wind heard her, even if it never spoke back.</p><p>She rose higher in the air, the thermals taking her where she requested.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>The Warren.</p><p>An underground oasis carved out by A. Easter Bunnymund himself.</p><p> </p><p>Jackie had been very few times but knew it was a colorful and warm paradise that just made you feel <em>good</em> being in its environment.</p><p>There were tunnels that Bunnymund had made all around the world for easy access, but it wasn’t easy access for an outsider. Luckily, Jackie, amongst the other Guardians as well had been given permission to use a tunnel located in the outback of Australia.</p><p>The air was warm and dry and Jackie felt a little too snug in her usual hoodie as she drifted over the dry, deserted land.</p><p>The tunnel was hidden amongst large rocks, tall as a building and in a small, maze like circle. Unnoticeable to anyone who didn’t know it existed.</p><p>She settled onto the dry dirt and began walking amongst the rocks, her staffed settled on her shoulders. She would’ve contemplated putting her long hair up if she had a hair tie of some sort, the heat being a little overbearing.</p><p>The tunnel was dark, and a gentle cool breeze floated up from it, giving Jackie some relief from the harsh biome of Australia.</p><p>She flew down through it, avoiding the sharp curves and turns that Bunnymund could easily run through, making a sharp dive at the end that she knew no human could follow into safely, and burst into bright light,</p><p>The Warren.</p><p>A bright haven of plants and flowing rivers of colors that Aster dyed his eggs in.</p><p>The Sentinels of the Warren turned towards her as she floated above them, moving slowly as she did.</p><p>She settled into a warm patch of fresh grass as the Sentinels loomed over her for a moment, before turning away, deeming her not a threat.</p><p>She smiled, walking past them, following the flowing waters and watching as the flowers alongside it bloomed in the presence of another Guardian, showing her their hard-worked colors. She bent at the waist, her hair falling into her face. She pushed it back behind her ears, digging her nose into the center of the flower and smelling deeply, taking in the lovely fragrance. Her thoughts were interrupted.</p><p>“Hey, frostbite!”</p><p>She stood, brushing her hair back from her face.</p><p>Aster was walking towards her, a smirk on his face.</p><p>“Decided to take a quick trip down to the Warren, ey?”</p><p>He was finally standing in front of her, matching her height by at least a foot, not counting his ears. He looked no different than the last time they had seen one another, except he lacked his usual boomerang sling and arm braces. The tips of his fur and paws were different colors, showing he had been working on his Easter eggs.</p><p>“Yeah, I was bored and decided to come give you a headache, kangaroo.”</p><p>He narrowed his eyes at her but still chuckled.</p><p>“I didn’t really have anything to do. Not many continents have winter or cold season right now.”</p><p>They both turned and began walking as they held their conversation. Aster raised an eyebrow at her.</p><p>“Really, Jackie Frost using the excuse of a lack of winter to find hijinks to pull? Is the world coming to an end?”</p><p>Jackie felt her cheeks grow warm. Aster must’ve noticed, because his laughs turned into a stifling cough. 6</p><p>“I guess I was a little lonely, too. North and Tooth are usually always busy so I don’t like to bother them. Sandy…” she trailed off.</p><p>“A little too much on the quiet side for you?” he laughed.</p><p>“Something like that. We haven’t…we haven’t really…” she couldn’t piece her words together, it felt awkward, “We haven’t really ever hung out too much. I just was thinking about you I guess.”</p><p>Their walking slowed and Jackie realized they stopped by where Aster must’ve been working on his eggs, a pile of them were sitting on a mat by the edge of one of the creeks that ran pink.</p><p>“Well, uh, I could use some help if you’d like to stick around a while. Paint some eggs, tie some bows?” Aster chuckled. Jackie smiled, and bent to pick up an unpainted egg.  She tossed it in the air and caught it a moment later.</p><p>“Sounds fun. Boring,” she tossed it again, higher this time, but caught it with the hook of her staff before dipping it into the water,” but fun.”</p><p>Aster clapped her shoulder.</p><p>“That’s the spirit! Let’s start.”</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The warmth of the Warren was a nice change from the cold winter atmosphere she was acclimated to being around.</p><p>She had braided together some grass stems together to make something of a tie for her hair which she used to put her long hair up into a messy bun to get some heat off her back and rolled up her sleeves.</p><p>She had been dipping eggs into the colorful creeks and painting messy designs next to Aster's elegant ones for all day. They had tossed a few words of conversation back and forth for a bit but were otherwise quiet, wrapped in their work. Being close to Aster all day felt nice.</p><p>The light in the Warren was slowly becoming dimmer and she only looked up when Aster stood, stretched his arms above his head and then twisted his neck, popping it.</p><p>“Everything okay?” she asked, still holding a dripping egg.</p><p>“Yeah, the day is starting to end and we’ve done a lot of work. I say we’ve earned a break.”</p><p>Jackie blinked and noticed the Warren was more settled and dimmer. She heard the chatter of bugs and the low croaking of toads.</p><p>“Does it turn to night down here?” she asked as she stood, her hair flopping in its messy bun.</p><p>“It does. Can’t sleep when the sun is up.” He chuckled. Jackie floated upwards and stretched out her legs to stand, stretching from sitting for so long.</p><p>Aster turned and began walking through the thick grass. She started following him, stumbling along behind him a hurry.</p><p>
  <em>Where are we going?</em>
</p><p>Eventually they turned around a rock and Jackie blinked, seeing a large grassy mound with a door in it and a small round window cut out of the side of the hard dirt. A mossy stone path leads up to the door. She blinked in surprise and stumbled on one of the stones.</p><p>Aster turned to look at her as she stumbled and chuckled.</p><p>“It’s my bungalow. I dug it out myself. Surprised?” He said proudly.</p><p>Jackie blinked again then turned to him.</p><p>“Yeah, I figured you curled up in a pile of grass and hugged an egg to sleep.” They laughed and Aster pushed her shoulder, causing her to stumble again.</p><p>“Come on inside. I’ll cook us some dinner.”</p><p>“Cook? I thought you just ate grass and wimpy carrots.”</p><p>Another round of laughter, but Aster gave her a bit of a glare as he turned the knob and opened the door.</p><p>“Watch it, snowflake. I cook a mean meal.”</p><p>When was the last time she had eaten a hot meal?</p><p>Jackie couldn’t answer that.</p><p>The inside of the bungalow was a bit of a shock. Very comfy.</p><p>The walls were hard stone and dirt, but the entire place was clean. An old couch sat along the main wall, worn in from being used by Aster for so long. An old-style TV set sat in the corner, antenna pointed in odd directions, but the inside was gutted, and the screen was gone. It held a potted plant now.</p><p>A large bookcase sat across from the couch on the opposite wall, and between the two sat a small table with a record player on it.  A collection of vinyl’s sat underneath the table, the corners of their cases a little dog marked but otherwise, good condition.</p><p>A thick woven rug was on the floor, and a tapestry hung on the wall, a lantern hung from the ceiling, the flame flickering gently.</p><p>“Close the door for me, would you?” Bunnymund’s voice came from behind a counter she just noticed, an island in between the living room and kitchen. He was squatted behind the island, only his ears sticking up.</p><p>She turned and closed the door and set her staff against the wall. She turned and tucked her hands into her hoodie, feeling out of place. She quietly followed the sounds of pots clattering into the kitchen, glancing at a dark hallway that led off from both of the rooms.</p><p>The kitchen wasn’t built like a kitchen she saw in a human household, but an old vintage fridge stood in the corner, and Aster seemed to have built counters around a fire pit in the middle, with a spit over it to hang pots on. The kitchen was a bit more lit up than the house, an extra lamp hanging over the kitchen.</p><p>“This is nice.” It was a genuine comment.</p><p>Aster stood, holding a large pot. He set it on the counter and pulled two bowls out from inside it to set next to it. He knelt with a piece of flint and began sparking a fire in the little cooking pit.</p><p>“Thanks. Built it all with my bare hands.” He smiled. A fire crackled and began to rise in the pit burning away the small shavings he used.</p><p>She turned to the fridge and grabbed the handle, opening it.</p><p>“Does this work?” but she had her answer when she opened the dark fridge. It wasn’t cold, and just held mason jars of jarred foods.</p><p>“No, unfortunately. I liked it enough though. I dragged the whole thing home when I found it.”</p><p>“Where do you keep anything you need to keep cold?” she was curious.</p><p>Aster chuckled, and hung the pot on a hook that hung on the spit, the water sloshing a bit. He walked past her and knelt by a little wooden door in the floor she hadn’t noticed. He opened it and she floated over, hovering over the door. She felt a draft of cold air rise sharply from it, and saw water pooling in it. A few bottles bobbed back and forth in the water.</p><p>Aster reached in and puled out two of the bottles, handing her one. The glass was cold to the touch, and when she touched the glass, frost appeared around her fingers.</p><p>“I use this, sort of how people did in the old days before that dang electricity. The water flows in and out from an underground river, I blocked off some of it and downsized it to little holes the water comes in and out of it. It keeps anything I want cold, I have fresh water, and it acts like an icebox.”</p><p>She smiles and looks at the bottle, the liquid inside a bright orange.</p><p>“It’s just fruit and vegetable juice. I make it myself. Bottle it for later.” He pops the bottle off his and takes a sip.</p><p>“Fruits and vegetables or just carrot juice?” She laughs and he smirks behind his raised bottle.</p><p>“Watch it, twinkle toes, or you’ll see what carrot juice is like.” He says in a playfully threatening tone.</p><p>Jackie snorts loudly at the faux threat.</p><p>“What does that <em>even mean?!</em>” She laughs loudly. Aster chuckles with her.</p><p>“I have no idea. Here, let me get dinner started. You can sit anywhere.”</p><p>He set his bottle on the counter and opened the fridge, pulling out vegetables she hadn’t noticed earlier. He pulled a knife and a cutting board from a nearby drawer and began cutting. He cut fast, and then would turn and dump them into the boiled pot.</p><p>She leaned awkwardly against the opposite counter, taking small sips of the both bitter and sweet juice.</p><p>Aster finished and set his dishes into a deep dish with an old pump faucet next to it, a sink Jackie guessed. He began running water and washed the dishes. Feeling awkward not giving a hand, she spoke up.</p><p>“Do…you need any help?” Aster's eats perked and he turned to her.</p><p>“Sorry, you were so quiet I almost forgot you were there.” Jackie blushed and she looked away, and Aster noticed.</p><p>“No, no, I just meant I’m used to being alone here. I think you’re the first person to come in my bungalow in a long while.”</p><p>It both surprised her and didn’t. Aster seemed to be a well-liked person, but not a very open one.</p><p>“Uh well, dinner is nearly ready. Just wash your hands.” He said awkwardly, stepping out of the way as Jackie hovered over to the sink.</p><p>“Okay, dad.” She groaned in a taunting manner. Aster chuckled.</p><p>“And make sure to get under those fingernails.”</p><p>Jackie watched as the colors from the egg dye trickled into a rainbow down a drain, washing from her fingers slowly.</p><p>“Alright. Dinner is served.”</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>A vegetable and herb broth didn’t sound pleasing but Jackie had to admit, Aster could cook. She scarfed it down and drained the bowl of its liquids, chugging the fruit juice from its bottle as well.</p><p>Aster laughed from where he sat on his couch, slowly eating from his bowl.</p><p>“Would you like to critique my work for me?”</p><p>Jackie nodded happily, wiping her hoodie sleeve against her mouth.</p><p>“For the first meal in a long time, I enjoyed this. Even if it is rabbit food.” Aster chuffed at her and she snorted. She pulled her legs up under her and sat cross-legged.</p><p>“So, what’s with the TV?” She laughed, setting her bowl down and leaning her head on her closed fist. She and Aster glanced at the gutted out set and he laughed.</p><p>“I liked how it looked. It was broken, but I brought it back.”</p><p>“Where did you get all of your furniture?”</p><p>Aster shrugged.</p><p>“Randomly. The vintage look always captured my attention.” Aster finished his broth and stood to collect their bowls.</p><p>“I really appreciate your help today. I don’t get much down there.” Jackie pursed her lips for a moment.</p><p>“I lied about being bored when I came here. I more…was thinking of the first time we came down here together, with Sophie. It was a nice memory, and we… we finally put our differences behind us.” She admitted. She could hear Aster rustling in the kitchen, but he quieted when he heard her.</p><p>His footsteps brought him back into the living room.</p><p>“I enjoyed that day too, snowflake. I did, too, amongst all of the bad that Pitch was causing.”</p><p>“Like turning you back into a bunny?” She chuckled. He rubbed the back of his head in annoyance but still laughed.</p><p>“Yeah, like turning me into a regular size me.”</p><p>They both laughed together for a moment, but Jackie didn’t know whether her presence was continued to be wanted here.</p><p>“Well, I guess I should go.” She stood and reached for her staff.</p><p>Aster spoke up.</p><p>“Where are you headed for the night? It is late out.”</p><p>She shrugged. She didn’t have an actual home like Tooth or North, or even Aster. She wasn’t even sure where Sandy normally stayed.</p><p>“I usually just sleep in a tree. My usual spot.” Aster rubbed the back of his neck.</p><p>“You can…stay here for the night if you want.” He was quiet.</p><p>She was thrown back a bit by the invitation.</p><p>“Well, I don’t want to be a bother- “</p><p>“You aren’t, twinkle toes, you aren’t.” He interrupted.</p><p>She chuckled.</p><p>“But I’m guessing your place isn’t set up for a guest, is it alright if I camp out in a tree here in the Warren?” Aster lowered his head and chuckled, not making eye contact.</p><p>If he wasn’t covered in fur, Jacklyn was sure he would’ve been blushing.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, go snag a tree limb for the night, snowflake.”</p><p>She smiled as she opened the door.</p><p>“Hey, uh, Aster? Thank you, for letting me hang around today.” She stumbled over her words for a moment as she stood in the lit doorway.</p><p>Aster smiled, putting his hand on his hip.</p><p>“Sure thing, Jackie.”</p><p>She shut the door quietly with a bye, before blinking. Aster had never really called her by her name.</p><p>
  <em>What a day for firsts, huh?</em>
</p><p>She picked up off the ground and floated a little way away to a large tree and settled into a nook of a large branch. It was homely enough for her. She tucked her staff behind her head, letting her hair out of its messy bun. It immediately fell from its pile to hang around her like a veil.</p><p>The entire Warren was dark, and even without the moon to look up to at night, it was nice.</p><p>She drifted off soon.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>A dark eye watches as the figure leaves the little mound of a home, the vision blurry. Despite the poor eyesight, it can tell the figure is the little Guardian with the long white hair and the ice powered staff. She shuts the door, but not before the figure slithers inside, unnoticed. It sees the large rabbit figure, washing something a few feet away. Dishes maybe?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Who cared?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It slid into the corner and watched as the rabbit turned the lantern out and retreated further into the cubby hole of a home.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Everything quieted. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Tomorrow would come.</em>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>The singing of birds is probably what woke her, or maybe it was the rushing water from the creek next to her.</p><p>She sat up and stretched, glancing around her, feeling confused at the bright grass and sun for a moment, not her natural environment.</p><p>
  <em>Right, I’m in the Warren.</em>
</p><p>Last night came back to her, seeing Aster’s home, eating his dinner.</p><p>It was pleasant and she was lost in her head for a moment, before a voice called out to her.</p><p>“Hey, snowflake!”</p><p>Aster was waving at her from the edge of a creek that ran blue.</p><p>She floated down to him, out of the shade of the tree.</p><p>It was warm, and she knew it. She began rolling up her hoodie sleeves.</p><p>“Morning, how did you sleep?” He asked from where he knelt on the ground, dipping a bowl into the water to collect the dye. Jackie couldn’t help but notice how gently he moved, soaking the eggs in the dye and then taking a fine brush to make designs on them. It was soft and gentle, something that Bunnymund usually never displayed in his outward appearance. She stood over him, leaning over to look closer at his work. Her hair draped her face and caused a shadow over Bunnymund. He looked up at her and they stared deeply for a moment, before she glanced away.</p><p>“It was…fine. As fine as sleeping in branches can be.” She laughed quietly.</p><p>“Are you heading out today?” Aster said softly. The hesitation in his voice to ask the question sent a little shiver down her spine. She wanted to question her reaction but she didn’t.</p><p>“Well, I was thinking I could…stay a while and help out a bit more?”</p><p>Aster gave her a charming grin as she settled cross legged next to him.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>The entire warm day was spent cross legged, sitting next to one another, painting intricate designs on eggs.</p><p>Well, Aster painted the intricate designs. Jacklyn seemed to make squiggly lines.</p><p>She got bored and began dipping the eggs in a light blue color, before using white paint to draw snowflakes. Eleven eggs in, did Aster notice and speak up.</p><p>“Snowflakes? You realize it’s springtime, right?” he laughed. She ducked her head with a chuckle.</p><p>“Can’t say I’m great at painting flowers. Snowflakes? Yes.” She se the egg down and picked up a new one that had finally dried. She reached for a new bowl of dye, but felt her hands graze coarse fur. She glanced over at Aster's paw on hers before meeting his eyes. They both pulled away, and Jackie wish she knew if Aster was blushing like she was.</p><p>Aster suddenly stood and stretched again, so similar to the day before, Jackie suddenly noticing dusk was settling once more. The Sentinels lumbered around behind them, amongst the trees.</p><p>“How about some dinner again, if you’d still like to stay?” Aster said softly. She smiled and floated to her feet to follow Aster.</p><p>“I’d love to stay if you’ll have me.” She smiled softly.</p><p>The routine was similar to the day before, Aster putting up a pot and setting out vegetables to put in it. Jacklyn settled onto a counter across from him, sipping her bottled fruit juice.</p><p>“Would you like me to help?” She asked.</p><p>Bunnymund shook his head.</p><p>“No thanks, twinkle toes, but maybe we should wash our paws…hands, I mean.” Aster chuckled, raising his dye stained paws. Jacklyn glanced down at her own hands, noticing her fingers were stained as well.</p><p>She floated over next to Aster and stood next to him, lowering her hands into the sink next to his paws. The cold water splashed against her fingers and she watched as the colors of Aster and hers mixed as they flowed down the drain with the soap bubbles.  She never noticed how large Aster's paws were next to hers.</p><p>She looked up and realized he had caught her staring. She looked away with a blush.</p><p>“So, do you ever do anything different with your dinner? You know, change it up a bit besides soup?” she gave an awkward laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. Aster had turned away from the sink, shaken his paws dry, and grabbed the same bowls he had used, and cleaned, the day before.</p><p>“Well, uh, sometimes, not really. I really only cook for myself, so I never see a point in changing up much about what I do.” He ladled some soup into their bowls and handed her one.</p><p>“Come on, you have to have something special you do every now and then, like how some humans do ‘Taco Tuesday’ or whatever.” She spooned a bite of soup into her mouth, chewing the delicious vegetables and broth as they walked into his living room. He settled into his worn couch, and she floated towards a small stool Aster seemed to have set out for her.</p><p>“I, well, I do have some wine stashed away that I made myself.” He said quietly, chuckling as he continued his dinner.</p><p>“Wine? Really, that isn’t something I would’ve guessed.” She laughed, and Aster chuckled.</p><p>“I actually don’t drink it often. I’m usually busy at making eggs, and usually just save it for special occasions.” If there was a time for his face to be red, it would be now. He swirled the soup in his bowl.</p><p>“Now seems like a good time as any.” She had never had the opportunity to drink wine and she smirked as Aster shook his head and smiled.</p><p>“I’m not much of an alcohol drinker. I might get a little weird.” He laughed as he stood and walked over to what he called his ‘icebox.’</p><p>Jacklyn watched as he knelt and pulled a thick green bottle out from the floor cupboard, water dripping from the bottom. Jacklyn couldn’t help but stare intently at Aster, noticing he had muscles beneath his thick coat.</p><p>
  <em>He <strong>does</strong> do Tai-chi…</em>
</p><p>He stood and closed the cupboard and she blinked, lowering her gaze from Bunnymund.</p><p>
  <em>What was that about?</em>
</p><p>She heard the pop of the cork, the clink of a cup and watched as Aster poured the wine.</p><p>He walked back into the living room and settled back into his seat.</p><p>“is it hard to make wine?”</p><p>Aster shook his head.</p><p>“No, but it does need to ferment for a while. I’m not sure how old this bottle is, might be a few decades old.”</p><p>“Decades?” Her upper lip curled in disgust.</p><p>Aster laughed at her reaction.</p><p>“Yeah, kiddo. Sometimes the humans let wine sit for longer. They say the longer, the better, or something like that.” He smelled the wine before taking a sip.</p><p>“Is it sweet?” Aster shook his head.</p><p>“It sort of has a bittersweet taste, but it isn’t a sweet like regular juice. Sometimes it can taste a little dry.” He took another sip.</p><p>“May I try?” She leaned forward on her stool.</p><p>“Probably not best for s little bugger like you.” He laughed.</p><p>She rolled her eyes.</p><p>“I am over 300 years old; you know.”</p><p>“In the body of a 17-year old.” He pointed out with a laugh. She narrowed her eyes and he smiled, an annoyingly grin that showcased his joking manner.</p><p>“I feel like I’ve earned the ability to try some adult things.” She pointed out.</p><p>Aster gave a playful sigh before waving her over. Hiding her grin beneath tight lips, she floated over to sit next to Aster on the couch. Her knee touched his thigh on the small couch, and her heart seemed to beat a faster rhythm.</p><p>“Here, try a sip, you might not like it.” He passed her the cup carefully, and Jacklyn took it, shakily. She didn’t think Aster would’ve genuinely offered, but she was somewhat excited at the idea of trying alcohol. She took a large sip and cringed, the bitter liquid washing over her taste buds. It wasn’t terrible, but she didn’t care much for it.</p><p>Aster must’ve seen the look on her face, because he was laughing.</p><p>She swallowed the large gulp and handed it back to Aster.</p><p>“Didn’t care for it?”</p><p>“It wasn’t terrible, I guess, but it was definitely odd.” She coughed, the dry drink going down her throat. They laughed together, and she felt Aster’s paw settle onto her hand. They both quieted and glanced down at their hands, before pulling away. Too many times that had happened for Jacklyn to not notice, o brush it off, but she saw it. She pulled it away, wanting to leave it there, feel Aster’s coarse paw on her hand, intwine their fingers, but a flutter of anxiety in her chest made her not.</p><p>
  <em>I know what this feeling is.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Don’t say it.</em>
</p><p>“Do you get the same kind of drunk like humans do when you drink?” She questioned, trying to change the subject as she stood, walking over to his record player. It looked old, but loved, like most of things in his small bungalow.</p><p>She knelt and began going through the records slowly, flipping them back and forth to look at their titles.</p><p>“Yeah, it works the same a bit. I don’t drink much, so it doesn’t bother me.” He laughed and put a hand over his face for a moment.</p><p>“I’ve already said that, haven’t I?”</p><p>She glanced back at him and smiled.</p><p>“I’m not bothered by it.”</p><p>She pulled out a record that seemed to interest her and Aster gave a happy noise.</p><p>“That’s an amazing record from the humans, one of my favorites, you should play it.” She laughed at the obviously tipsy rabbit and stood, lifting the record player needle and placing the record on it.</p><p>Music began playing, and a lovely voice began singing as Aster walked over to stand next to her.</p><p> </p><p>“<em>Put your head on my shoulder</em></p><p>
  <em>Hold me in your arms, baby</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Squeeze me oh-so-tight</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Show me that you love me too…”</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Oh…I apologize, I sort of…forgot this was a bit of a romantic song.” Aster said quietly. He reached to seemingly change the record, but Jacklyn stopped him, grabbing his paw softly.</p><p>“No, wait…this is…nice. I like it.” They both smiled as the record kept playing, the male’s voice seeming to almost change the atmosphere of the dimly lit room. Jacklyn felt a little warm, the wine making her lightheaded. She and Aster glanced down at their hands, they still held onto one another. Jacklyn’s heart pounded; she had never felt this way before. She wanted to pull away… but she didn’t. She waited for Bunnymund to do the same, but he curled his paw around her fingers softly.</p><p>“Would you like to dance?”</p><p>She raised an eyebrow at him in a humorous manner.</p><p>“Have you ever danced with anyone or are you going to step on my feet and call it dancing?”</p><p>He chuckled and he gently pulled her closer.</p><p>“I doubt you’ve ever danced like this either.” They slowly began dancing in time to the music as the human male sang.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Put your head on my shoulder</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Whisper in my ear, baby</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Words I want to hear</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Tell me, tell me that you love me too (tell me that you love me too)”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Jacklyn blushed at the lyrics but kept swaying in time to the music.</p><p>She felt stuck, as a Guardian who was supposed to embrace the enjoyment of childhood, but here, she felt like an adult, who was acting and doing things that she might’ve done if she had the opportunity to grow up. She couldn’t deny that Aster had seemingly become attractive to her- of all people and beings, <em>Aster Bunnymund</em>- and she felt like she had seen a new side to him in such a little bit of time spent together. With what little time together spent, she felt like she had opened up to him in more ways than she ever had with anyone else.</p><p>Aster seemed to notice her thinking, her eyebrows furrowing a bit as she ran through her contemplated thoughts.</p><p>“Everything okay, Jackie?” He raised a hand to her face to cup it, without thought, but Jackie still pressed her face to his furry palm.</p><p>“Yeah, I…I’m just…I’m just thinking about a lot, I guess.” Her face was hot. This was different. This was weird. It was nice, but weird. Her thoughts didn’t feel straight.</p><p>
  <em>I’m so confused.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Not so long ago, Bunnymund would’ve tai-chi kicked me into a dumpster for being a pest.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Why is this so different now, why did I come here?</em>
</p><p>“Aster, I…I feel…good, being here, the last few days. Almost like I’m <em>home. </em>I mean, I don’t really have a home anyway, but I- “She gave a frustrated sigh and they stopped dancing, the song drifting into quiet as it ended. The record finished and the needle raised off the vinyl.</p><p>“Aster…I think, I feel- “</p><p>He leaned close and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek, and she stopped, in shocked silence.</p><p>“I know… I think maybe we should give your head a rest. I can see you’ve got it running nonstop amongst some other things.” She gave a small sigh in both relief and frustration as Aster pulled away from her and put the record back into its case, returning it to the shelf below.</p><p>“I guess I’ll head to bed.” She said quietly, tucking her hands into her hoodie pocket and turning away. She felt embarrassed, not understanding where her head had been going.</p><p>
  <em>Am I feeling something new? </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Is it just the atmosphere of the whole night influencing me?</em>
</p><p>“Would you like to stay inside tonight?” he said behind her.</p><p>Her heart thudded in her chest hearing Aster’s offer.</p><p>Seeing her tense up, Aster felt his own anxiety at scaring Jacklyn. He hadn’t meant anything <em>like that.</em></p><p>“I-I-I meant I could sleep on the couch; you can take my bed. I don’t have a guest room unfortunately.” He stumbled around his words.</p><p>“Um, I’ll stick with the tree for tonight. I appreciate the offer, but it’s just…normal territory to be in, I guess.” It was awkward between them, and Jacklyn held her elbow, squeezing her arms closer to her in comfort.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Jackie.” Aster words were quiet.</p><p>She turned to him and raised her head, giving a small smile to the nervous Aster.</p><p>“No, it’s fine. I think you’re right.” She awkwardly leaned forward and kissed his furry cheek. The fur was surprisingly soft against her lips, and Aster raised his eyebrows in shock.</p><p>“Goodnight.” She reached for her staff and walked outside briskly, not wanting to make the moment drawn out any longer. She gave a heavy sigh once the door was shut behind her, and she pulled her hoodie up, her hair bunching around the sides, before floating up to her usual tree, settling into the branch once more. She tucked her staff behind her head, before staring up at the ceiling of the Warren. It was too far to see in the dark, but there were fireflies blinking, and Jackie could almost trick herself into thinking they were stars.</p><p>
  <em>I think…I think I have feelings for Aster.</em>
</p><p>That was enough thinking for now.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>Aster lay in his bed, lightheaded from the wine he had decided to indulge in earlier. The night was warm, but he felt cold, awkward.</p><p>
  <em>Why did I do that? Why did I make that decision?</em>
</p><p>Aster couldn’t sleep, his bed not seeming to be comfortable. He rolled onto his side and curled up slightly.</p><p>
  <em>Jacklyn is a friend…right? <strong>Just </strong>a friend?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No, this has evolved past that. Tooth is a friend. North, Sandy, even the Gopher, we’re all friends. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>I don’t feel this way towards them.</em>
</p><p>Aster rubbed a tired hand over his own face. He was confused.</p><p>
  <em>Is she technically 17? Is she considered over 300? is this an okay relationship to be involving myself in? </em>
</p><p>
  <em>What would the others think?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I’ve never dated. I’ve never been in a relationship. That is…not what a Guardian does.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Can this even end well? Where do I intend on going with this?</em>
</p><p>He couldn’t answer his own questions. He nodded off before he could. Music played in his dreams as he began falling asleep.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Put your head on my shoulder</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Whisper in my ear, baby</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Words I want to hear, baby</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Put your head on my shoulder…</em>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>Dark blurry vision, it sees the rabbit and the little figure. The voices are muffled, but they’re there.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Music is playing, hard to hear over it. The dim lantern above them doesn’t do much to help.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It can see the slow footsteps, human feet stained, large furry paws with a tiny bit of dirt and debris in the fur. They’re dancing, close enough that it can only be assumed they are holding one another.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>They stop, the music stops.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The atmosphere is warm, but it quickly becomes awkward.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The two seem to bid goodnight after, and the human leaves. The rabbit seems tired, sluggish, and moves off to the bedroom. He disappears into the dark house, disappearing out of sight.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The world is quiet.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It waits. And it plots.</em>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>Sleeping hadn’t taken the weight from the previous night away, but Jacklyn woke, not knowing what to expect.</p><p>She braided her hair and dusted off her hoodie in an attempt to look nice before floating down to the river to meet Aster.</p><p>
  <em>Why? When have I ever felt the need to clean up for someone?</em>
</p><p>Aster was quietly painting his eggs still, but he seemed restless.</p><p>
  <em>Did he sleep as uneasily as I did?</em>
</p><p>She made herself known with a small cough and Aster seemed to jump, not realizing she was there. They shared a few words, words she didn't bother to retain, they held no meaning but to be fillers for the awkward air, but they otherwise seemed to avoid talking about anything from the previous night, Aster seeming to put himself into his work, not looking too much at her.</p><p>
  <em>I don’t think I’m ready to talk about this either.</em>
</p><p>She settled back into her routine, cross legged, painting snowflakes onto the eggs that Aster said not to. It was a fun game for the time being, him chuffing at her and shaking his head.</p><p>"Snowflakes on East eggs..." He grumbled, the side of his mouth curled up in a smirk.</p><p>Dusk came and they both wrapped up their final eggs, sending them down the path to gather with the others they had finished, to be waited for Easter to arrive shortly in a few weeks.</p><p>They made their way to the Bungalow, not saying much but passing a few humor-filled jabs here and there. The conversations seemed meaningless, fillers for what they really wanted to say.</p><p>They washed their hands, and Aster started dinner for them while opening the wine from the previous night, as they quickly picked up banter.</p><p>“…so, I just figured it was abandoned and brought it back home!” Aster laughed, in defense of his furniture’s backstory. Jackie laughed, wiping a tear away from her eye as she bounced on the couch in joy.</p><p>“How did you not notice it was a bomb testing site? Random mannequins and houses built everywhere?!”</p><p>Her ribs hurt from laughing.</p><p>“How am I supposed to keep up with all those weird tests and inventions that humans do! I saw a nice fridge and dragged it home, what else can I say?”</p><p>He passed her a bowl and settled next to her.</p><p>Jacklyn quickly ate, the warm, now familiar soup being a treat to the long, warm day. She felt productive and welcomed here, like she actually had something to do.</p><p>Aster twirled his wine in his glass for a moment before sipping. He was already lightheaded, but it was partially his anxiety.</p><p>
  <em>What was that saying humans used, liquid courage?</em>
</p><p>She set her empty bowl down on top of the gutted TV, now used as a plant holder, and turned to him.</p><p>“Aster, I think we’ve been…dodging the subject all day. Can we talk?” She felt mousy, and quiet, opposed to her normal confident attitude. What would the others say if they ever saw her in such a state?</p><p>Aster sighed and set his wine down as well.</p><p>“Yeah, twinkle toes, we probably should. I know, last night was…odd. For me as well, not just you, I honestly don’t even know where I’m going with this.”</p><p>They both sat quietly for a moment, before she reached forward and grasped his paw.</p><p>It was soft and furry, a bit dry and coarse as well. She stroked his paw and they looked at one another, staring deep into one another’s eyes.</p><p>"I don’t think I know either, and that’s okay.”</p><p>Aster wanted to lean closer, but he didn’t. His nerves made him shake, but Jacklyn knew. She could feel it in his paw. She was nervous, too. She gently pulled him to his feet, and he swayed a bit. The lantern above them was dimmer than normal, the oil running low.</p><p>She put back on the record they had been playing the night before, and they swayed to it, tucked into one another’s arms. It was awkward and wonderful at the same time. Jackie pressed her face into his chest, and he set his head on tops of hers.</p><p>The song soon ended, and they looked into one another’s eyes once more.</p><p>“What now?” He said softly. She bit her lip, an answer lost to her.</p><p>
  <em>Didn’t think this far ahead.</em>
</p><p>Aster chuckled and kissed the top of her head, threading his fingers through her silky hair.</p><p>“We don’t have to answer that anytime soon, I guess.” He seemed disappointed; she couldn’t tell fully. He wrapped her into his arms closer.</p><p>“We can take our time and figure out what this is. I’m just as lost as you are.” He said softly. She felt the truth in his words and pulled away. Their fingers loosely hung on one another, before they let go simultaneously.</p><p>They said their goodnights and even with an extended invitation to stay inside, Jacklyn declined. She felt awkward and unsure if she could sleep within feet of Aster’s bedroom. She floated into her tree and settled. She was tired, and her heart ached from so much sudden change. This was a different ache from the one she felt when she was lonely, when none of the kids believed in her and could see her. This was a different kind of want, deep inside of her. She pulled her hood up to sleep.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>The bed was hot and uncomfortable, and Aster couldn’t sleep.</p><p>What should he have done? Kiss her? Cement his feelings?</p><p>What did he feel for her?</p><p>Was he reading too much into this?</p><p>
  <em>A dark hallway, it slithered down the hard dirt and stone floor, moving quickly from its hiding space it had camped out in the past few days.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It found the doorway to his bedroom and slid inside.</em>
</p><p>Aster rubbed his face in annoyance. He should get up and go outside and say something. He began to sit up in bed.</p><p>Was this too fast? Since when had things changed from Jacklyn being a scrawny loner Guardian to being a beautiful woman in his eyes? Oh, her hair, her silky hair he had pulled his fingers through, having ached to pull it out of its braid all day and-</p><p>No, no no, no. Aster clutched his paws into fists.</p><p>This wasn’t okay.</p><p>
  <em>Tension, frustration. It could feel the Guardians conflicted feelings.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It slithered toward the warmth of the rabbit’s foot.</em>
</p><p>This wasn’t okay, and Aster knew better. It wouldn’t end well, it just wouldn’t, and he couldn’t bare to hurt her any more than he knew declining what was happening would. He stood and began leaving. This shouldn’t wait until morning.</p><p>Suddenly, pain!</p><p>
  <strong>Pain!</strong>
</p><p>Horrible pain shot up his leg and Aster fell to the floor, clutching his foot. He let out a loud groan and felt the floor, trying to determine if he had stepped on something.</p><p>He felt something slither through his fear and his heart raced, slapping where he thought he could feel it move.</p><p>Was it a bug? It hadn’t felt like a bug. It felt heavy and limbless.</p><p>It circled his head and he twitched his ears, patting his face, He felt something but couldn’t grasp it, it squirmed from his grasp.</p><p>He was starting to panic, something very rare for him. But something was crawling on him and he didn’t know what.</p><p>He felt it! He felt go inside his ears! He cried out in pain as he felt it dig into his ears and he began clawing at it, but to no avail. It was too far down into his ear canal. His skull was on fire, and he let out a loud cry as he grabbed the sides of his head.</p><p>And suddenly, the world tilted, and Aster hit the floor, his vision going back.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>Jacklyn was restless, waking up on and off.</p><p>She thought she kept hearing odd noises, not something she had heard in the Warren the past few nights, but she kept trying to put it out of her mind.</p><p>She was drifting off back to sleep when she heard footsteps in the grass, moving quickly.</p><p>
  <em>Was it an animal?</em>
</p><p>She glanced down into the darkness of the Warren, but without MIM above her on a normal night, it was nearly pitch black down here. She squinted and could see a figure moving.</p><p>
  <em>What?</em>
</p><p>She sat up and slowly floated down to the ground to get a better look, trying to let her eyes adjust to the dark. She could hear the Sentinels off in the distance, their heavy footsteps seeming so quiet.</p><p>The figure was coming at her, quick. She squinted and drew back.</p><p>“Bunnymund?”</p><p>He didn’t seem to stop, just kept charging towards her. Her heart pounded in anxiety.</p><p>“Aster?” She said more quietly, but she knew he wouldn’t answer.</p><p>She turned and sprinted, leaping over a large boulder in her way. She couldn’t see, running blind through the Warren as Aster seemed to be following behind her, so close.</p><p>Something was wrong with Aster.</p><p>She slipped in a puddle, and nearly took a tumble, using her staff to launch herself upwards. Maybe she could find the tunnel and leave, get help, come back-</p><p>A rough paw grabbed her foot and yanked her downwards.</p><p>She let out a cry as she smacked the ground, her staff flying off into the darkness. Her chest and face hurt, and she could do nothing but struggle with Bunnymund as he seemed to be trying to hold her limbs down.</p><p>“Aster, please stop, you’re scaring me!” she screamed, throwing her arms up to try and protect herself. But Aster ripped her arms away, pinning them above her head. She couldn’t see his eyes but could hear his heavy breathing.</p><p>Jacklyn squeezes her eyes, but it changes nothing, the world around her already so dark. Without her vision, her senses were heightened. She could feel Aster’s hands gripping her, feel his hot breath wafting over her skin.</p><p>Her clothes rustled and let out a small cry as she realized she was being undressed.</p><p>“No! Stop!”</p><p>She tried to clasp her arms in front of her body as Aster was pushing her hoodie upwards, but it did nothing. He sat her up roughly and turned her around. Her arm was twisted behind her back.</p><p>She was shaking in fear and pain and began kicking, trying to get away from him. He was so much stronger than she was. Without her staff, she was helpless.</p><p>This couldn’t be Aster. It couldn’t be.</p><p>What had she done to deserve this?</p><p>She knew what was happening. She had watched those crime shows they showed on human television, the cold cases and the realistic ones. She wasn’t stupid to the ways of bad things that happened in the world.</p><p>Her pants were gone, ripped down, and she was partially bare in the dirt. She could feel her arm going numb from being twisted.</p><p>She sobbed into the darkness, and kept her eyes shut, even if it didn’t matter.</p><p>The toads croaked in the background, such simple minds, too unaware to understand the implications of what was happening.</p><p>Aster’s furry limbs pressed against her skin and rubbed as he pressed her knees up, giving him leverage.</p><p>He pushed in and Jacklyn sobbed loudly in pain, not wanting to process what was happening.</p><p>He held her hands to the ground as he thrusted in and out of her, grunting along with his movements. Her hips ached and she turned her face to sob into the dirt.</p><p>
  <em>This is not happening, this is not happening, this is not happening, this is not happening-</em>
</p><p>One hand moved to clasp her wrists together above her head, and the other pushed her knees upward. Her insides were hurting, she felt wet. Aster was large and thrusting in and out, making her feel stretched open. She sobbed harder, letting out a scream of pain when he seemed to dig his feet into the ground, push deeper, and thrust harder.</p><p>
  <strong> <em>This isn’t happening, this isn’t happening, this isn’t happening-</em> </strong>
</p><p>Aster dropped her wrists but grasped her hips roughly as he grunted louder with each thrust, seeming to stop and shake for a moment. Her insides burned, felt dry and wet and hot at the same time. Her cries lowered once Aster seemed to stop thrusting, shaking inside of her.</p><p>Both of their breaths were labored, and she felt exhausted, worn.</p><p>Aster moved, to do what, she didn’t know, but she immediately kicked at him and swung her arms. It was enough to stun him for a moment, and he fell to the side as she managed to crawl out from under him. Her thighs felt wet, her stomach as nauseous and greasy. She stood in a hurry, tripping over her pants pulled around her calves, but she yanked them up as she run. She couldn’t see him, but she knew Aster was already on his feet, chasing after her.</p><p>Her lungs were burning, her chest pounding, every fiber in her body telling her to <em>run.</em></p><p>She darted away, felt her foot collide with something hard and fibrous, where it bounced in front of her.</p><p>Her staff!</p><p>She bent and grabbed it as she ran, using it to take off as soon as she could.</p><p>The Warren was dark, but she managed to find the tunnel that would take her out. She disappeared into its blackness, letting the dark hole consume her as she fought herself to freedom. The sound of Aster chasing her soon disappeared behind her and all she heard was her labored breathing and small cries she didn’t know she was giving.</p><p>She doesn’t know what twists and turns she took, or how she made it out of the unknown to her tunnels, or where she was even, but she did. And when she did, she shot into the sky, MIM shining above her so large and bright, the stars around twinkling. It was a welcome sight from the dark underground Warren.</p><p>Knowing she was far away and safe did not make her feel better.</p><p>Her exhaustion beat through her and she found herself falling to the ground, the wind carrying her softly, so she didn’t get hurt. She felt a forest floor, pine needles acting as a soft bedding underneath her.</p><p>It was only when she stopped shaking, did she cry, her heartbroken wails carrying through the woods.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The aftermath begins, but Jacklyn doesn't know how to process what happened. Meanwhile, Aster doesn't remember what happened.</p><p>Sandy senses something is off.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The rustling of the water in the creek is what he heard first, but it was the smell of the grass tickling his nose that made him open his bleary eyes.<br/>Aster blinked a few times, his vision blurry from a groggy sleep.</p><p><br/>He groaned; his body ached and his arm was numb, warm from being underneath him the entire night.<br/>He sat up and clutched his head. Dull pain covered his entire body, he felt beat up, dizzy, and his stomach felt sick. </p><p><br/>Once he felt the ability, he opened his eyes and focused around him. He was in the Warren, but not his home. No, he was far off a ways from it, sleeping in the grass and dirt next to the river. </p><p><br/>He heard a lumbering footstep and turned to see a Sentinel standing over him, almost acting puzzled to see its creator sleeping in the grass.</p><p><br/>It wasn’t an odd thing for Aster to sometimes curl in a warm patch of grass to nap, but it was odd that he ached so much and couldn’t remember how he had gotten there.</p><p><br/>He stood with a groan. He felt painful, like he’d been in a tumble with someone. </p><p><br/>He checked himself over, noticing he felt sore like he’d been kicked, but found no cuts.</p><p><br/>He noticed his fur around his midsection was clumpy and dirty, and he sighed, knowing he would need a bath. </p><p><br/>He walked slowly back to the Bungalow, walking around to the pump he had built to the side of it. He didn’t need to bath often, he typically cleaned up nicely, but he would need some scrubbing this time.</p><p><br/>The water pipe squeaked from rusty workings and the water sloshed out after a moment. Aster splashed the cold water to his fur and shivered, grabbing the soap he left on a rope around the faucet and scrubbing. He didn’t know why, but he scrubbed his ears as well, feeling sticky and gross, full of wax.<br/>He scraped a finger inside, but came back with only a small bit of black wax under his claw. He grumbled and wiped his claw clean, before shaking to get most of the drippy water off himself.</p><p><br/>The Warren wasn’t fully lit up, the sun still coming up over the Earth and even coming far less into the Warren. He had built the underground oasis to have sunlight through a careful structure in the stone ceiling, but even then, it took a high sun to make the Warren be entirely sunny.</p><p><br/>But he could tell it was still early morning as he walked along the paths around his home.</p><p><br/>He glanced around, confused still as to how he ended in the dirt overnight. His fur raised as he remembered his guest he had for the last few nights and jogged over to Jacklyn’s usual tree.</p><p><br/>He glanced up into the high branches, but couldn’t see anything.</p><p><br/>“Snowflake?” he called up playfully, but there was no sound or rustle.</p><p><br/>He turned around, feeling a little dejected. Did she move to a different tree?</p><p><br/>He jumped to the next one, calling out, and another one.</p><p><br/>“Jacklyn? Jackie?” he called.</p><p>He stopped to listen. </p><p>Nothing but the running waters of the rivers and the rustling of the trees returned his calls.</p><p>
  <br/>
  <em>Had she left in the middle of the night?</em>
</p><p><br/>Aster sat down, squatting on his haunches and sighed sadly, his ears flattening back.</p><p>
  <em>I think I scared her off.</em>
</p><p><br/>It should’ve been expected, he sighs internally. He moved too fast, dancing with her, kissing her head. Maybe it was too much. He hadn’t been thinking, but, how could he? He was wrapped up in having a good time.</p><p>Jacklyn had…brought something out of him. </p><p>
  <em>Something bad.</em>
</p><p><br/>He turned around quickly, feeling the fur on the back of his neck raise.</p><p><br/>Nothing was around him, the Sentinels off patrolling, no detectable threat near. </p><p>He could’ve sworn he heard a voice, something in the back of his head.</p><p>He scratched his ears again, feeling stuffy. </p><p>Maybe she would come back in a few days. Maybe she changed her mind. Aster wasn’t going to bother her with it. She obviously had her own thoughts to deal with. It wasn’t like they had agreed to anything, relationship or otherwise. They were enjoying one another’s company, and that’s all there was to it. <br/>He stood and walked back to the Bungalow, hoping to grab his paint brushes and get to work, to take his mind off of the entire exchange.</p><p> </p><p>____________________________________________________</p><p><br/>A bird nearby cooed, before the rustling of its wings were heard and it took off.</p><p>The forest was quiet now.</p><p>Jacklyn blinked.</p><p>And blinked again.</p><p>The sky above her was blue, white fluffy-looking clouds.</p><p>She shifted slowly, groaning inwardly as she slowly pushed herself to sit up. </p><p>She was lying on a pile of pine needles, both soft and wiry. They prickled her skin and she flicked a few off her clothes before dusting herself off. She stood, her legs aching. </p><p>She glanced around for her staff and picked it up off the forest floor before looking around her. She must’ve flown out of a tunnel that ended in a different area than where she had gone in.</p><p>It was a lush forest around her, warm and green with cypress trees. She could hear crickets in the grass, birds singing in the trees. She clasped her staff to her chest tightly and sighed as she started walking.</p><p> </p><p>She wasn’t quite sure where she was, or where the tunnel had taken her. </p><p>She pressed Twinetender to her body in an attempt to feel more comfortable. </p><p>It did a little. </p><p>She began walking, feeling more pine needles fall off her clothes and out of her hair.</p><p>She felt a little hazy, as the sun beams cast over her through the trees. </p><p>She didn’t want to think about anything. She wanted to keep walking forever in this forest.</p><p>She kept walking, feeling the weight of sadness begin to sit on her shoulders. She didn’t want to think about it. She didn’t want to think about how her back hurt, her legs hurt. She hurt in other places but she shook her head in an attempt to forget. </p><p>She tried to let the forest environment take her over. The quiet, the singing birds, the warm sun. </p><p>It didn’t.</p><p>She felt like a cloud of darkness followed her. </p><p>Tears were brimming behind her eyes and she inhaled, her bottom lip trembling. She didn’t want to cry. A tear escaped and slid down her cheek and she angrily wiped her away with her hoodie sleeve. </p><p>Eventually, the rough forest floor got to her and her feet were hurting. Pine needles and thorns pricked her feet and the rough floor scraped her feet.</p><p>It also felt like she was being watched. She wasn’t sure if it was because of the formidable environment of the empty forest, or because she hadn’t seen any animals that usually scurried around, but she didn’t feel safe.</p><p>She finally gave in and floated upwards.</p><p>She flew above the trees and scanned the area. She saw nothing but trees and a bright sun and sky. She turned in the air, trying to get a good sense of direction, but everything looked the same.</p><p>She finally chose a direction and sped off, hoping to get away from the forest, and hopefully, to somewhere where she felt safe.</p><p>____________________________________________________</p><p><br/>She felt like she had flown all day before she finally spotted a small town. </p><p>She had finally left the forest behind her and she kept going. </p><p>Towns turned to cities and small streets turned to neighborhoods. The comfort of having multiple people around her felt better. She felt safe. </p><p>But she kept flying for some reason, even past the cities.</p><p>She didn’t know why. </p><p>She didn’t feel safe enough yet.</p><p>A large mass of gold in the distance caught her attention and she stopped for a moment before changing her direction towards it.</p><p>She watched as Sandy's gold dream sand flew down in its little streams to the children in the houses below, granting them happy dreams and worlds that were unimaginable. </p><p>She flew to his sand cloud and landed on it, feeling herself sink into the warm sand. Her body ached and her eyes felt heavy. Sandy turned towards her, a little shocked but otherwise gave a smile and a wave. </p><p>She smiled at the short sandman.</p><p>“Hey Sandy, sorry to bother you.” He shook his head, giving a smile. Even though Sandy was speechless, he could say so much with a bit of body language.</p><p>She knew he was older than all of them and knowledgeable about the world in more ways than anyone else. She felt safe here and she couldn’t help herself as she began to lay in the sand he conjured. </p><p>A question mark appeared above his head and he put a hand to his chin in thought, almost as if to say, </p><p>
  <em>Are you okay? What’s the matter?</em>
</p><p>She blinked rapidly, hoping to keep herself awake.</p><p>“I kind of got lost and have been flying for a while. I’m…really tired. Is it okay…if I rest here for a bit?” she said this between yawns.</p><p>Sandy smiled as she laid in the sand. She felt so warm and safe here.</p><p>She didn’t intend on sleeping, she just intended on resting for a bit. But as she lay there, her eyelids began shutting.</p><p>The last thing she saw was Sandy sprinkling his sand over her, giving a small smile and a wave as she slumbered. She dreamt of black, swirls of darkness being washed away by a flurry of ice and gold sand.</p><p>____________________________________________________</p><p><br/>Sandy finished his job for the night and watched over the frost guardian as she slept. He had manipulated his sand into something of a blanket to pull over her.</p><p>He knew it wouldn’t do much in terms of helping but it made him feel a bit better. </p><p>He was worried though. He didn’t believe Jacklyn in her excuse of saying she had gotten lost. She looked exhausted beyond any way he had ever seen her.</p><p>Jacklyn took up the room with her personality when she wanted to, but now she seemed so small and frightened. He had been surprised to see her here, expecting her to be somewhere where it was colder, throwing snowballs at kids. Instead, she was here, her usually vibrant eyes so cloudy and distant.</p><p>Sunrise started to approach and Jacklyn woke. </p><p>After a few small words, she thanked him and took off from the sand cloud. </p><p>Sandy still felt worried, pondering what might’ve upset the teen Guardian so much. </p><p>It sent a bit of a chill down his spine. </p><p>Sandy had been around for a long time. </p><p>He hated to admit that he had seen things. Terrible things. </p><p>And people who no longer carried that vibrancy in their eyes were the ones who usually carried the most pain.</p><p>Sandy followed the night as it approached and began working, sending out his threads of sand to the children to grace them with their wildest dreams.</p><p>And all the while, he thought about his friend and how he worried about her.</p><p>The sun was rising and Sandy knew he should follow the night, but the weight of his worry settled on his shoulders made him stop and contemplate for a while. </p><p>His cloud swirled around him and he turned it into a plane and took off, following the sun for the time being. </p><p>____________________________________________________</p><p><br/>Jacklyn decided to immerse herself in a crowd to feel better, even if the humans couldn’t see her and tended to walk through her.</p><p>But being surrounded by people just <em>felt</em> better, safer. </p><p>The bustling of the cities at night was less than the activity than it was during the day, but even then, there was always someone needing to go somewhere.<br/> </p><p>She wandered for a while, Twinetender on her shoulder, not sure what to do with herself and her time. There wasn’t any snow and the weather was decent, and she knew it would draw some attention if she tried to start some snow fights or freeze a pond. </p><p>And no kids were awake at this time. </p><p>She gave a sigh as she waited for a crosswalk to turn green, pausing to continue with the flow of the crowd. Her vision seemed to haze over a little and she stared off into the distance at the sidewalk.</p><p>People began moving past her and she snapped back to the present.</p><p>She felt so empty inside. She was unsure as to how to change that.</p><p>Everything felt messed up.</p><p>Just days ago, she was enjoying herself and having a good time.</p><p>Her and Aster-</p><p>She squeezed her eyes shut and clasped a hand to her head. Her heart thudded in her chest and her breaths were shuddering.  </p><p>She didn’t want to think about it. </p><p>She never wanted to think about it again.</p><p>Once she felt like she had calmed down, she opened her eyes and blinked. </p><p>People kept walking around her, never noticing her presence, never seeing her. </p><p>She stared at the ground for a minute, still shaking a bit, clenching her hands into fists. Her hand clasping her staff gripped it until it hurt, the wood digging into her palm.</p><p>She wasn’t okay and she knew that. But she couldn’t let herself fall into this. She couldn’t.</p><p>The darkness she had been running from all day hadn’t left. And it wasn’t following her. </p><p>It was already in her. </p><p>She let out a heavy sigh, feeling her body decompress a little. </p><p>She needed to process this. In her own way.</p><p>She opened her eyes and released her clenched hands, putting one in her hoodie pocket. </p><p>She looked up from the concrete and into the crowd, before freezing.</p><p>It was like time had slowed as people walked past.</p><p>She felt stuck where she was.</p><p>Pitch was staring at her, standing no less than ten feet away. Her dark eyes seemed to glitter.</p><p>And suddenly, he was gone. Someone walked in front of him and he disappeared. </p><p>Everything moved at its regular speed and Jacklyn noticed she hadn’t been breathing. She rapidly inhaled and exhaled, feeling her heart pound in her chest. </p><p>She started to briskly walk forward to where he had been standing, wondering if what she had seen was true or not.</p><p>Was Pitch really back? </p><p>Or was she imagining it?</p><p>Pitch had been quiet since they defeated him, but was there a chance he was back now? And if so, why?</p><p>Or was it just her head messing with her?</p><p>A man seemed to side step around her and she paused for a moment in shock. He glanced at her and smiled as he was walking, his eyes dark.</p><p>“Hello, Jacklyn.” His voice was smooth and dark, just like Pitch. It made her tremble, her skin prickled with goosebumps out of fear. </p><p>And like that, he was gone, into the crowd. She turned in circles, wondering where he went, looking for Pitch, the man, but saw nothing. </p><p>She was breathing fast as people continued to walk past her, through her, never being seen. She had to leave. She had to leave now. She didn't feel safe. Not here, not anywhere.</p><p>She flew straight up and took off, away from the city. </p>
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